Forests of the Central Appalachians Project

Inventories to Protect

The Central Appalachian forests of Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland
and Pennsylvania are some of the most biologically diverse and
most threatened ecosystems anywhere. Home to many thousands of
species of plants and animals, they represent a vast but dwindling
source of medicinal compounds, recreational amenities and precious
solitude. They make up irreplaceable wildlands that were and
are the ultimate origin of our clean air and water, and even diminished
as they are today, play a greater than ever role in our civilization's
survival. Yet all this is jeopardized by single-minded exploitation
in the form of mining, destructive timbering, road building and
innumerable and varied development schemes. And this is happening
with only limited knowledge of what is being lost. Many centers
of diversity and rarity and the last remnants of old growth are
being destroyed while the interconnected mosaic of habitats is
being sundered as never before. Consequently an important and
even critical element of any protection strategy must be a more
thorough knowledge of the forest and its physical and biological
structure. To this end Virginians for Wilderness have designed
the Forests of the Central Appalachians Project by which we seek
the most comprehensive picture ever of these forests.

The Link Between Biological Inventories and Forest
Protection

Given that public agencies such as the U.S. Forest Service conduct
biological inventories, how can additional ones be justified?

We believe detailed knowledge of the forest is an imperative
for its protection. However, given that the public agencies such
as the US Forest Service conduct biological inventories, how can
additional ones be justified? Unfortunately, to put it bluntly,
inventories done by some public agencies, and particularly by
the US Forest Service, cannot be trusted because they are frequently
biased in such a way as to favor decisions already made. Also,
to cut costs they are often conducted by unqualified personnel.
It works as follows:

The US Forest Service employs its own scientists and many others
from academic institutions and the private sector to do inventories
of plants and animals, ostensibly to prevent negative impacts
on them by timber sales and other activities in the national forests.
However detailed information collected by VFW under the Freedom
of Information Act indicates that many of the inventories are
woefully incomplete, incompetent or fraudulent. Associated experiments
are conducted in such a way as to support destructive policies
such as clearcutting. In some cases independent scientists under
contract have been forced to recant opinions arrived at by valid
research because they conflict with Forest Service policies.
In the case of the Elk Mtn. timber sale in the Monongahela national
Forest, no copies of field notes could be obtained even under
the Freedom of Information Act and the Regional Forester stated
that he didnít know if they existed!

Some public agencies, such as State Natural Heritage Programs,
do produce trustworthy information. However when such information
relates to national forests, or in some cases state lands, it
may be suppressed by the US Forest Service or the state agency
concerned. In some cases Natural Heritage employees have been
threatened with withdrawal of support by the US Forest Service.
Both Forest Service and Natural Heritage scientists have lost
their positions when they refused to produce fraudulent inventories.

Although many of the data we rely upon are obtained from our
own field inventories, we also incorporate many from other sources.
Unsuppressed natural Heritage Program inventories are highly
reliable because they are conducted by academic and other experts
who are beyond the reach of biased agencies. We make use of as
many of these data as possible. However Natural Heritage Programs
tend to concentrate on rare species and communities while we also
require information on more widespread forest communities. Thus
we have another reason for conducting our own inventories.

We have already monitored or inventoried hundreds of sites throughout
the Central Appalachians and the number of detailed inventories
entered into our computerized data base is approaching fifty.
Among studied areas are several centers of diversity such as
Blowing Springs which is as yet part of unprotected general forest
in the George Washington National Forest but for which we seek
protection as a research natural area as well as an integral part
of our Wildland Reserve System. A large timber sale was originally
scheduled. We are assembling all available data to produce the
most comprehensive picture of Central Appalachian forests and
to incorporate these data into a protection strategy and a Wildlands
Reserve System.

The Project

The Project is in part inspired by E. Lucy Braun' classic
Deciduous Forests of Eastern North America. However it
is confined to the Central Appalachians and is somewhat different
in emphasis. Although it treats a smaller area than Braun does,
it takes a broader approach within this area. Instead of emphasis
on forest trees it attempts to include as many species as possible,
give equal weight to the diverse herbaceous flora and weave in
faunal elements as the occasion presents itself. Although Braun
was well aware of the role of geology in forest ecology and cited
many examples, more extensive and site-specific correlations are
attempted in this Project. In particular many examples of microhabitats
are drawn upon.

The major thrust of the Project is in its "forest walks"
which are distributed over diverse terrain. Typically these walks
are traverses, usually from low to high elevations during which
an attempt is made to identify and record along the way as many
taxa as possible as well as environmental data such as elevation,
aspect, rock and soil types, disturbance regimes, etc. More transient
elements such as weather conditions and wildlife sightings are
also recorded. As frequently as practicable the traverses are
punctuated by "spot inventories" in which a representative
or unusual community or tract of forest, perhaps half an acre
(0.2 hectare) in extent, is inventoried in more detail. When
centers of great diversity or complexity are encountered, a number,
or even numerous return visits may be made, particularly during
the growing season. In some instances soil, rock or vegetation
samples may be taken for laboratory work, or sample plots may
be established.

The site and time-specific observations that characterize the
forest walks, and which are retained in the final product, are
a unique feature of the Project. They provide a variety of baseline
data for many areas within the Central Appalachians. Inclusion
of biologically diverse and general forest areas as well as many
that are well known and accessible provides a resource for teachers
of forest ecology as well as the general public who, by consulting
the Project documentation, may plan field trips and science projects
with greater economy. The specific nature of the observations
and accessibility of many of the sites visited also provide a
desirable vulnerability of the data to confirmation, rejection
or revision.

Fig. 2- Painted Trillium at Potts Pond

Data Interpretation

The Project makes use of a new approach in the interpretation
of the inventoried biologic communities. This approach is grounded
in an analogy with the mineral systems that form the substrates
of those communities. Like minerals forest species are regarded
as having stability fields in systems with many variables
such as those of chemical composition, soil moisture content and
temperature. For example, the stability field of Chinquapin Oak
(Quercus muhlenbergii) appears to be confined to alkaline,
lime rich soils with low moisture-content at moderate temperatures.
By contrast that of Chestnut Oak (Quercus prinus) appears
to lie well within the acid range in low soil moisture environments,
usually in association with silica-rich rocks. In this way the
stability fields of many forest species can be mapped and graphed
in at least semi-quantitative or general terms.

Stability field analysis in forest ecology provides a practical
framework for data collection. In particular it mandates the
recognition of microhabitats since, as in the case of mineral
systems, forests are subject to communication/mobility constraints
on their chemical, physical and biological components. This limits
the sizes of units in which stability relations can be expressed.
The concept also has a bearing on the recognition of sizes of
representative stands of trees and the relative importance of
the presence or absence of given species versus the number of
individuals of these species in the stands. Finally it demands
a correlation of species with the mineral substrate as well as
other environmental parameters. Consideration of these factors
are of course additional to those of classical ecology, many of
which also bear on stability relations.

Stability field analysis is an outgrowth of the natural tendency
in nature toward dynamic equilibrium, with the caveat that perfect
equilibrium is only a reference state. While the well-known criteria
for general equilibrium apply, forest equilibrium does not have
the thermodynamic basis of the simpler mineral version, although
the latter exerts its influence in the substrate. Its most familiar
expression of stability is in the attainment of forest climax
in which natural disturbances are perturbations.

These theoretical musings do have implications in forest protection
because they reveal a depth and systematization beyond those of
current ecological theory. For example, it is likely that the
patchiness of the microhabitat mosaic is as important as that
of macrohabitats. They also serve as an aid to prioritizing data
collection in the rapid biologic assessments which are assuming
greater importance in this age of ecodestruction.

Fig. 3-Tentative overlapping tree stability fields with resulting
associations (A, B, C) as a function of field position. Concept by RF
Mueller, graphic by the
Gus.

Figure 3 is an illustration of the stability fields of a number
of tree species in terms of acidity and soil moisture. It is
based on a variety of field data including some resulting from
this Project. Community and forest type ranges may also be derived
from such figures or direct field experience (Mueller, Wild
Earth 6(1), 1996).

Management of the George Washington National Forest is in a state of flux, as it is in the National Forest System as a whole. In the evolving mental climate of the administrators, the true function of big wilderness-as the imperative for biodiversity and the evolutionary process-is still only faintly grasped. (From Wild
Earth, Vol. 7, #2, pp 62-66, 1997)

Management of the George Washington National Forest is in a state of flux, as it is in the National Forest System as a whole. In the evolving mental climate of the administrators, the true function of big wilderness-as the imperative for biodiversity and the evolutionary process-is still only faintly grasped. (from Wild Earth Vol. 1 (3), pp 62-67)

Six forest types were represented, and although most samples were from calcareous substrates, some were from substrates developed on highly acidic chert within the calcareous terrain (see our section on Hydrastis canadensis L). The period of collection was exceptionally dry, with only a few light rains. Thus, there is an increased probability that chemical leaching of the leaves was minimal.

Soil temperatures related to several forest types and different environmental conditions in the Central Appalachian Mountains.
See also the versions from 2001 and 2002.

Forest Walks- Details

(Look below the map for text descriptions of these walks as well additional ones not yet plotted.)

The following are our Forest Walk inventories:

Altona Marsh - In Jefferson County, West Virginia, about one mile
west of the city of Charles Town.

Anthony Creek Old Growth - The tract of old growth or ancient forest near Neola, West Virginia occupies an east-facing slope just west of the North Fork of Anthony Creek.

revisedBear Mountain/Laurel Fork - This area, which lies in the highest part of the Central Applachians, features moderately fertile soils.

Beartown Wilderness/Chestnut Ridge - Long, straight and winding sandstone ridges that close back on themselves to form features such as Burke's Garden, a 3100 foot (945 m) high agricultural valley composed largely of Ordovician limestones.

Blue Bend/Round Mountain - A sharp bend of Anthony Creek, a major stream in this part of the Valley and Ridge physiographic province.

Ecology of Chief Logan State Park - Logan State Park lies in the heart of Coal Country and thus is emblematic of the ecosystems at risk and presently being destroyed by Mountain Top Removal/Valley Fill Mining. MTR/VF Mining is one the most far-reaching types of environmental abuses. Survey by R. Hunsucker.

Craig Creek Watershed - Logan State Park lies in the heart of Coal Country and thus is emblematic of the ecosystems at risk and presently being destroyed by Mountain Top Removal/Valley Fill Mining. MTR/VF Mining is one the most far-reaching types of environmental abuses. Survey by R. Hunsucker.

Cranberry Glades - These form a wetland complex in a deep valley beneath some of the loftiest parts of the dissected Allegheny Plateau.

East Fork Greenbrier Watershed - Surveys conducted in the vicinity of the Island campground of the Monongahela National Forest northeast of Thornwood, West Virginia.

Hall Spring/ Rader Mountain/ Laurel Run Spruce Forest - NE of Reddish Knob the Shenandoah Mountain crest swings east a few miles and in that angle forms a small sloping plateau. Rader Mountain is an extension of this plateau to the south, while Laurel Run issues from springs on its slopes. The highest of these springs is Hall Spring.

Hidden Valley - Valley is a local segment of the Valley of the Jackson River, a bold Virginia stream that for most of its course follows the strike of the folded Appalachians, then curves east across the ranges to become the James at Clifton Forge.

Horseshoe Run/Dorman Ridge - Horseshoe Run is a tributary of the Cheat River and lies within the Allegheny Mountain subprovince in Tucker and Preston Counties,West Virginia.

updated, Dec. 2004Hydrastis canadensis L. - This herb, sought ever more intensively for its medicinal and herbal properties, is under grave threat of extirpation wherever it occurs.

Ascent of Kennedy Creek - Kennedy Creek seems more like the precinct of a native god or demon of green light and shadow.

Kumbrabow State Forest - The high precipitation and average elevation result in a rich forest characterized by many northern and montane species, and, according to the State, "forms a showcase for Black Cherry and Red Spruce."

revised and expanded 10/03Laurel Fork Wilderness Areas and Vicinity - These twin federally-designated wilderness areas are in a region of considerable ecological interest and illustrate the close relations between floras and their geologic and climatic environments.

Lilley Cornett Woods - A Report of a 5 hour walk by Dr. Robert Hunsucker from lower coves to the Mountain Crest on 7-7-06.

Mill Hill - Of particular interest are calcareous sandstones, in which silica grains are cemented by calcium carbonate, and which may give rise to substrates for plants much like those derived from limestone.

Morris Hill - The hill is bordered on the southeast by the Jackson River flood plain and on the northwest in part by the Lake Moomaw impoundment. Bedrock is the Upper Silurian / Lower Devonian complex of shales, sandstones and limestones that occur widely throughout the region (see our section on Blowing Springs) (Rader and Evans, 1993).

Ascent of
Pearis Mountain - Our ascent of Pearis Mountain was along the Appalachian Trail, starting at the edge of the City of Pearisburg.

Pedlar River Watershed - The Pedlar River, a tributary of the lower James, lies between the westernmost ridge and a complex of some of the highest peaks of the northern Blue Ridge.

The Pennsylvania Allegheny Salient - The salient is defined by a unique concentration of northern plants-and to a lesser degree mammals and birds - centered in Somerset and Cambria Counties.

Petite's Gap - Petite's Gap, at 2461 feet (750 meters) asl and 37o34' N latitude, lies between two federally-designated wilderness areas, the James River Face and Thunder Ridge to the northeast and southwest respectively. The terrain is moderately rugged and the country rock is Pre-Cambrian layered pyroxene granulite.

Pine Mountain Settlement School Property -
Pine Mountain is the northeast to southwest-trending surface expression of a major thrust faultwith a steep, northwest facing scarp slope and amoregentle southeast facing dip slope. It is near 100 miles (161 km) in length in Kentucky and extends south into Tennessee with only few significant gaps.

revised 8/03Ramsey's Draft - a branch of the Calfpasture River and thus a part of the James System.

Reddish and Bother Knobs and Vicinity - Coupled with variations of soils, aspect and air drainage, this elevation difference of about 3000 ft. has resulted in considerable disjunct habitat and endemism, the full extent of which are still being revealed.

Smoke Hole Country - In a limestone karst area near the South Branch of the Potomac River in WV.

Warm Springs Mountain - The range extends southwest 28 miles from Burnsville to Covington, Virginia and averages about three miles in width. It attains elevations of 4000 ft in several places, with a maximum of 4225 ft on Bald Knob.

completely revisedTea Creek/Williams River - Many peaks in the surrounding plateau rise above 4000 ft (1220 meters) asl with Red Spruce Knob at 4700 ft. (1430 meters). Elevation along the Williams River at Tea Creek is about 3000 ft (910 meters) while on the southwest side of the river the steep slope of Sugar Creek Mountain rises to 4000 ft. in 2/3 mile (1 km).

1: First Inventories - A presentation of transcribed notes from the early field trips that evolved into The Forests of the Central Appalachians Project. These notes are presented with all their warts and omissions (especially punctuation!). Where clarification is needed, this is bracketed.